


Table Nine

by RPGgirl514



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M, Gossip, Harry Potter Bashing, Harry Potter Epilogue What Epilogue | EWE, Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Inspired by Music, Minor Cho Chang/Harry Potter, Not Epilogue Compliant, POV Outsider, Surprise Ending, Witch Weekly
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-06
Updated: 2020-08-06
Packaged: 2021-03-06 05:42:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,760
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25748335
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RPGgirl514/pseuds/RPGgirl514
Summary: Cho Chang, gossip columnist for Witch Weekly, is about to get the scoop of her career.
Relationships: Harry Potter/Ginny Weasley
Comments: 1
Kudos: 20





	Table Nine

**Author's Note:**

> This is a stand-alone fic, but it’s also intended as a sort of prologue for a long-form fic I’m writing about Ginny Weasley. There is some minor Harry Potter bashing, but that’s to be expected when it’s written from the point of view of an ex-girlfriend.
> 
> It was inspired by the new Glass Animals song, ["It's All So Incredibly Loud."](https://youtu.be/hyx0YftuyDU)

“Hurry _up,_ Huck, we need to get set up before they arrive,” Cho said, bouncing on her toes. “We don’t want to draw attention to ourselves.”

“I’m hurryin’,” her photographer groused, yanking at his cuffs irritably. “Only I just got off the Knight Bus, din’t I? Calm your Kneazles, woman.”

“When do you get your Apparition licence back?” Cho said impatiently. “I need you to be available when stories come up.”

“Two months an’ eighteen days. Bloody Ministry stuffed shirts. I Apparate better pissed anyway.” Huck hoisted his camera bag onto his shoulder as they entered _Il Cuore Spezzato_ , the new upscale Italian restaurant in front of which Cho had been waiting for the last ten minutes.

Inside, the bistro was a perfect meld of tradition and modernism. Dark wood paneling and bracketed oil lanterns gave the space a cozy, warm ambiance, offset by sleek stainless steel accents. 

“Their reservation’s at seven, so we’ve got about half an hour until then. Table nine is in the alcove, just there; he probably requested it for privacy.” Cho smirked. “He ought to have made the reservation under another name if he wanted to avoid us.”

“He couldn’t have done, could he? Same-day reservations at this place? Not bloody likely unless you’re the Saviour of the Wizarding World.”

“Or press,” said Cho with a sly smile. “Cho Chang and Huxtable Price,” she said to the maître’d, discreetly flashing their _Witch Weekly_ credentials. He winked and seated them within sight of table nine, though it was rather farther across the dining area than Cho would have liked. Nevermind, though; she had the tools to do her job and do it well.

“I’m running to the ladies’ to freshen up,” she said. She looked back sharply. “No firewhiskey.”

Huck looked affronted.

“I mean it,” Cho said. “We’re working, and I’ll be damned if you cock up this story for me. Harry Potter’s proposal is going to get my byline on the front page.”

Cho disappeared into the ladies’ room. She didn’t usually bother with a glamour, but considering the subject of tonight’s surveillance, and the momentousness of the occasion, she thought it couldn’t hurt. Cho lengthened her nose, lightened her complexion and her eye color, and turned her hair strawberry blonde. A final tap brought out her freckles. She looked a bit like a Weasley cousin, and nothing like herself, which was entirely the point. Satisfied, Cho stuck her wand between her teeth and plaited her hair quickly. Before leaving the loo, she straightened and smoothed out her navy sheath dress and applied lipstick. It wasn’t quite the right shade for her new look, but it would have to do.

When she returned to the table, she was relieved to find Huck with a gillywater in front of him, garnished with two cocktail onions speared upon a toothpick. He did a momentary double take, then relaxed as he realized who she was. He jerked his head toward table nine.

“He came in while you were in the loo. Still no sign of her yet.”

Cho glanced over to see Harry had, indeed, been seated in the booth. His back was to her, but she could just make out the profile of his face as he glanced around, jiggling his foot under the table. “Looks nervous,” she commented.

Huck nodded. “I reckon you’re right. This has got to be the night.”

“Hmmm,” Cho said. “I don’t know. He hasn’t been spotted in any jewellers in Diagon Alley or Hogsmeade, though. There’s a possibility we’re wrong.”

“Maybe he’s got an heirloom or sumthin’,” Huck said with a shrug. He took a sip of his gillywater and grimaced. “Or they’ll go together to pick it out. You went to school with him, din’t you? What d’you reckon?”

 _Went to school with him,_ Cho thought. That was one way of putting it. “He was a Gryffindor,” she mused. “You know, charge in first, ask questions later. Not one to plan out the details in advance.”

Huck smirked. Cho already knew he’d been in Slytherin, eleven years above her. “Bloody Gryffindors,” he said, without malice.

The waitress stopped by their table. Cho ordered a glass of wine. “Why do you get to drink?” Huck demanded.

“Because I, unlike you, don’t have a drinking problem,” Cho said. “And it’s got to look like we’re out on a date. That’s why I asked you to wear the suit.”

“It’s itchy.”

Cho rolled her eyes and extracted a pair of Extendable Ears from her handbag. Weasley’s Wizarding Wheezes had come out with an updated version since her school days and Cho had found them very useful in her work as Witch Weekly’s junior gossip columnist. Not only did they allow the user to eavesdrop on conversations, they also recorded everything. Cho would be able to replay what she had heard later, back in her office, so she didn’t have to bother with quill and parchment while in the field.

About ten minutes later, the door opened and the hostess greeted a lovely redhead. Ginny Weasley was simply radiant in a gold dress, showing off her Quidditch physique. Cho supported the Tutshill Tornados, of course, but she had followed Ginny’s career since the Harpies had signed her last year, and if her performance as a reserve continued as it had been, she would be a starting Chaser next autumn for certain.

Cho stuffed the Extendable Ears into her own ears as Ginny took the seat across from Harry.

“—was surprised you had a reservation here,” Ginny was saying. “You didn’t mention it yesterday.”

“I had other things on my mind, I guess,” Harry mumbled. Cho heard ice clinking as he took a sip of his firewhiskey. He was already on his second glass. Very nervous, then.

Ginny grinned. It was an odd mix of sweet and feral, affectionate and lascivious. “Those ‘things’ look forward to being on your mind again, or perhaps on . . . other things. Maybe tonight?”

Cho snorted softly and felt Huck’s eyes on her. “Just banter for now,” she told him.

“—ought to have a drink,” Harry said.

“Alright, but if you’re trying to get me drunk and easy, Mr. Potter, I can assure you I’m not that kind of girl,” Ginny said teasingly. Harry didn’t respond. Cho wished she could see his face, to read his expression. Was he enjoying the innuendo, or was he uncomfortable? Thinking back on her own awkward and disastrous date with Harry Potter, Cho would hedge a bet on uncomfortable. But that was five years and a lifetime ago. Surely he was more suave and charming now, particularly around the woman he was about to propose to.

Cho realized she’d lost focus and turned her attention back to the couple. A glass of wine had appeared in front of Ginny by now. Her freckled fingers were wrapped around its stemless bell, swirling the ruby liquid before taking a sip.

“—going on?” Ginny asked. “You’re acting so strangely tonight.”

Cho’s heart began beating faster. This was it, it nearly had to be. She signaled Huck, who had his camera concealed in his lap under the table. He sat up straight, turning his head casually to observe from the corner of his eye.

“Ginny, I—I think we should stop seeing each other.”

Cho’s mouth went dry. Surely she had heard wrongly. _What?_

The bistro around them hummed with lively conversation, but through the Extendable Ears the silence of table nine was deafening. It reminded Cho of a Quidditch match: that moment when the Quaffle had left the Chaser’s hands, a split-second before the Keeper made a move.

Cho heard a soft clicking noise and knew Huck was taking several stealthy photos. They really were an excellent team; Huck took his cues from her and knew exactly when to start shooting. Cho felt like she was vibrating; she was the first person in the entire country to know whatever she found on Huck’s film would blow apart the wizarding world.

Huck craned his neck around. “She looks gobsmacked; was that it then? Did he pop the question?”

Cho shushed him and pressed the Extendable Ears more firmly into her own. She watched Ginny’s pale hands splay over the table, as if to stop herself from floating away. Her eyes were so wide, her mouth slightly open. Her tongue darted out to wet her lips, slightly darkened by the wine.

“—ay something, Gin,” Harry was saying. He put his hand over hers on the table.

Ginny swallowed hard. “Is this because of what happened last night?” she said, so quietly Cho barely heard, even with the Extendable Ears. _What happened last night?_ she wondered.

“What? God, no. _No,”_ he said firmly. “Last night was . . . it was wonderful. Really.”

Ginny didn’t look convinced. “Did I do something wrong?” she asked. Her eyes were free of tears, but Cho thought she saw Ginny’s lip tremble the tiniest bit.

“Psst,” Huck hissed. “What’s he saying?”

“I think . . . I think this is a break-up,” Cho said. 

“What?” Huck looked as stunned as she felt, but then a broad smile split his face, and he rubbed his hands together. “Oh, I love the break-ups. So much drama; I hope she throws her drink in his face. Or maybe, if we’re lucky, she might hex him!”

“—evaluating what I really want out of my life,” Harry said as Cho tuned back in. “I’ve put in my resignation with Robards effective today.”

Ginny’s eyebrows disappeared into her hair. “You _what?”_

“I don’t want to be an Auror anymore,” Harry said. “I’ve dropped out of the training programme.”

Cho reeled. Not only was Harry Potter breaking up with his long-term girlfriend, he was dropping out of the Auror programme? She pinched her thigh. Nope, not dreaming. What other metaphorical Dungbombs was the Boy Who Lived about to drop on the public?

“—always supported your decisions, and you never told me _any_ of this,” Ginny was saying, more calmly than Cho thought the situation warranted. “You’ve never mentioned you were unhappy in our relationship.”

“I’m not unhappy.”

“Happy people don’t quit their careers or their girlfriends without reason,” Ginny said, and now Cho detected an edge to her voice. _Good girl,_ Cho thought. _Show the great Harry Potter he can’t just jerk you around._

“I just need some time to figure things out,” Harry said.

“I waited for you,” Ginny said. “I waited for you once, because you had things to figure out then, too.”

“Gin—” Harry began, but Ginny held up her hand, and Cho cheered internally.

“I’m not saying you shouldn’t have, of course you had to. You saved all our lives and won the war. But it’s always been you pushing people away. If you keep doing it, you’re going to end up alone, and you’re going to deserve it. I’m not waiting for you again. I want you to understand that. I want you to know what you’re giving up.” She slid out from the booth, and Harry grabbed her wrist.

And then Ginny’s wand was in her hand, pointed at Harry’s face, and a hush fell over the tables nearby. Cho saw the maître’d having a furious whispered conversation with two waitstaff, gesturing in the direction of table nine.

“Let go of me.”

From the side of Harry’s face Cho could see, she thought he might try to argue. Cho saw his knuckles whiten. 

_“Chiropterus mucofugit!”_ Ginny shouted, and Harry released her as enormous winged bogeys poured from his nostrils. Cho heard the furious clicking of Huck’s camera as he howled with laughter.

Cho glanced over and saw the maître’d and several servers hurrying forward, whether to forcibly escort Ginny from the restaurant or to assist Harry Potter, she didn’t know. Ginny darted between them as easily as she avoided Bludgers on her Nimbus, and for the briefest moment their eyes met. There was no recognition, of course; Ginny had no idea who she was. But Cho saw the tears shining in her eyes and realized how much it had cost her to seem so unaffected. And then she was gone, and the staff of _Il Cuore Spezzato_ had swarmed around Harry. Cho hastily retracted the Extendable Ears and tucked them back into her handbag as the commotion died down. Harry left, his hand being wrung by the sympathetic maître’d. The rest of the patrons gradually returned to their meals and conversations, though there was a heightened buzz as people discussed this juicy new piece of gossip.

“Merlin, that’s one for the ages,” Huck said, wiping tears of a mirth from his eyes as he stowed his camera away. Cho didn’t answer.

Why was her mouth so dry? Cho wondered. She wasn’t the one whose hopes of a future with the Chosen One were crashing down around her. She downed her wine in one gulp. Huck studied her with concern. “Are you alright?”

“Fine,” Cho said. “I’m fine. Let’s go. If we work fast we can get a special issue out tomorrow morning.”

Huck groaned as Cho left a few galleons on the table and shrugged on her coat. They used the Floo by the door.

Cho felt much more composed when she was back at her desk, Wearing her own face again. With cup of tea in hand, she set to composing a brief letter to her contact at the Ministry. She hoped Marietta was working late; confirmation of any charges against Ginny would make her article all the more salacious.

Huck had disappeared into the darkroom two floors below to develop the photographs he’d taken. Cho knew it would be several hours before he had finished his work; even with magic, art couldn’t be rushed.

She set up parchment and balanced a Transcription Quill (“the latest and greatest of the Quick-Quotes line! Guaranteed 98.9 percent accurate!”) upon it. The quill waited, poised on its end. Cho took out the Extendable Ears, put them in, and tapped her wand twice against the trailing strings. The ends rose in front of her to form an exaggerated mouth, whose lips moved in sync as the conversation from the restaurant began from the beginning. Cho felt a bit sick listening to it again, knowing what was going to happen, remembering the expression on Ginny’s face when the impact of Harry’s words had sunk in. Like she’d been hit in the gut by a Bludger.

When the recording had completed, the strings collapsed back onto the desk. Cho withdrew the Extendable Ears and wiped the memory of them with a flick of her wand before stowing them and the Transcription Quill away in her top desk drawer.

Cho took out a fresh sheet of parchment and began to write, pausing to refer to the transcription occasionally. She was halfway through her article, already rife with heavy edits, when the owl arrived. Cho snatched the letter from the owl’s leg so fast it buffeted the air with its wings indignantly before soaring back out the window.

_Cho,_

_You’re fortunate I’m on duty tonight. A summons was sent to Ms. Weasley at her last known residence regarding a disturbance at an Italian bistro in Diagon. The owner is pressing charges for unauthorized and reckless use of the Bat-Bogey Hex and disruption of the dinner hour. You know I don’t like to speculate, but she hasn’t got a criminal record prior to this. It’s likely she’ll be let off with a fine and probably be trespassed from the establishment for a year. Unless Mr. Potter decides to press charges too, in which case the Ministry will have to make an example._

_I glanced over the criminal complaint, and that restaurant looks absolutely charming. We should get drinks there sometime._

_Regards,_

_Marietta Edgecombe_  
_Junior Records Clerk  
__Department of Magical Law Enforcement_

Cho grimaced and put the letter away. It was a shame, really, that Ginny would have such sanctions upon her after suffering heartbreak. Adding insult to injury. Cho hoped the Harpies, at least, would see reason and refrain from suspending her. Gwenog Jones had gotten into her fair share of hijinks. She’d probably think it a laugh.

Cho was very much looking forward to next season’s match between the Harpies and the Tornados, and resolved to buy tickets well in advance. She might even place a bet on a certain rising star.

Cho remembered her own ill-fated relationship with the Boy Who Lived. Five years on, she was better off without him. Ginny couldn’t see it now, but she would be too. Cho smiled and began to write.


End file.
